This agreement effectively adds 90 000 kms of roads for South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland to NAVTEQ’s data structure, together with in excess of 40 000 points of interest (POI) like scenic viewpoints and specific lodging information.

 

Users of navigation devices offering the Off-Road Guide can look forward to amongst other features, holiday trip planning and routing taking into account scenic tracks, difficulty of trails and natural landmarks; turn-by-turn navigation off the beaten path and benefiting from waypoint information and warnings while driving and guidance on biking and hiking trails.

 

Mapping data of Africa is notoriously difficult to collect since off road tracks can change based upon weather conditions such as heavy rains. According to Tracks4Africa their GPS tracks have not been copied from other maps or aerial photography, rather they are based upon actual GPS readings taken by people who have traveled the road or track. Tracks recorded this way are verified by correlating at least three reported track results.

 

“With this agreement, NAVTEQ and Tracks4Africa have set the base for a highly competitive and relevant product for the Southern Africa market,” says Alastair Protheroe, director Middle East and Africa map and content products from NAVTEQ.  “The offering, Tracks4Africa Off-Road Guide, combines the high quality map data and content from NAVTEQ with the unique outdoor content from Tracks4Africa.”

 

The Tracks4Africa Off-Road Guide will be available in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Mozambique in the first quarter of 2010.